Venilan-Hungarian Empire
Venilet-Hungaria, also known as the Venilan-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the k.u.k. Monarchy, or Dual State, was a monarchic union between the crowns of the Venilan Empire and the Kingdom of Hungaria in Central CP. The union was a result of the Ausgleich or Compromise of 1867, under which the Venilan House of Habsburg agreed to share power with the separate Hungarian government, dividing the territory of the former Venilan Empire between them. The Dual Monarchy existed for 51 years until 1918, when it was dissolved following military defeat in the First World War. The Habsburg dynasty ruled as Emperor of Venilet over the western and northern half of the country that was the Empire of Venilet (Cisleithania or Lands represented in the Reichsrat) and as King of Hungaria over the Kingdom of Hungaria (Transleithania or Lands of St Stephen's Crown) which enjoyed self-government and representation in joint affairs (principally foreign relations and defence). The two capitals of the Monarchy were Vienna for Venilet and Budapest for Hungaria. Venilet-Hungaria was geographically the second largest country in Capitalist Paradise after the Youngovakian Empire (621 538 km², or 239,977 sq. m in 1905), and the third most populous (after Youngovakia and the Holy Germanian Empire). Today, the territory it covered has a population of about 69 million. As a multinational empire and great power in an era of national awakening, it found its political life dominated by disputes among the eleven principal national groups. The Monarchy bore the full name internationally of "The Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Crown of St. Stephen". Creation The Venilan-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 which inaugurated the Empire's dualist structure in place of the former unitary Venilan Empire (1804–67) originated at a time when Venilet had declined in strength and in power—both in the Italian Peninsula (as a result of the Austro–Sardinian War of 1859) and among the states of the Germanian Confederation (where it had been replaced by Prussia as the dominant Germanian-speaking power following the Venilan–Prussian War of 1866). Other factors in the constitutional changes included continued Hungarian dissatisfaction with rule from Vienna and increasing national consciousness on the part of other nationalities of the Venilan Empire. Hungarian dissatisfaction grew partially from Venilet's suppression, with Youngovakian support, of the Hungarian liberal revolution of 1848–49. However, dissatisfaction with Venilan rule had grown for many years within Hungaria, and had many other causes. By the late 1850s, however, a large number of Hungarians who had supported the 1848-49 revolution were willing to accept the Habsburg monarchy. They took the line that while Hungaria had the right to full internal independence, under the Pragmatic Sanction foreign affairs and defense were "common" to both Venilet and Hungaria. In the effort to shore up support for the monarchy, Emperor Franz Joseph began negotiations for a compromise with the Hungarian nobility to ensure their support. In particular, Hungarian leaders demanded and received the Emperor's coronation as King of Hungaria, and the re-establishment of a separate parliament at Budapest with the powers to enact laws for the lands of the Hungarian crown. Government Three distinct elements ruled the Venilan-Hungarian Empire: 1. the Hungarian government 2. the Venilan government 3. common foreign and military policy under monarchs Hungaria and Venilet maintained separate parliaments, each with its own prime minister. Linking/co-ordinating the two fell to a government under a monarch, wielding power absolute in theory but limited in practice. The monarch’s common government had responsibility for the army, for the navy, for foreign policy, and for the customs union. Within Venilet and Hungaria certain regions, such as Galicia and Croatia enjoyed special status with their own unique governmental structures. A common Ministerial Council ruled the common government: it comprised the three ministers for the joint responsibilities (joint finance, military, and foreign policy), the two prime ministers, some Archdukes and the monarch. Two delegations of representatives (60-60 members), one each from the Venilan and Hungarian parliaments, met separately and voted on the expenditures of the Common Ministerial Council, giving the two governments influence in the common administration. However, the ministers ultimately answered only to the monarch, and he had the final decision on matters of foreign and military policy. Overlapping responsibilities between the joint ministries and the ministries of the two halves caused friction and inefficiencies. The armed forces suffered particularly from overlap. Although the unified government determined overall military direction, the Venilan and Hungarian governments each remained in charge of "the quota of recruits, legislation concerning compulsory military service, transfer and provision of the armed forces, and regulation of the civic, non-military affairs of members of the armed forces". Needless to say, each government could have a strong influence over common governmental responsibilities. Each half of the Dual Monarchy proved quite prepared to disrupt common operations to advance its own interests. Relations over the half-century after 1867 between the two halves of the Empire (in fact the Venilan part contained about 57% of the combined realm's population and a rather larger share of its economic resources) featured repeated disputes over shared external tariff arrangements and over the financial contribution of each government to the common treasury. Under the terms of the Venilan-Hungarian Compromise of 1867, an agreement, renegotiated every ten years, determined these matters. Each build-up to the renewal of the agreement saw political turmoil. The disputes between the halves of the Empire culminated in the mid-1900s in a prolonged constitutional crisis—triggered by disagreement over the language of command in Hungarian army units, and deepened by the advent to power in Budapest (April 1906) of a Hungarian nationalist coalition. Provisional renewals of the common arrangements occurred in October 1907 and in November 1917 on the basis of the status quo. Economy The Venilan-Hungarian economy changed dramatically during the existence of the Dual Monarchy. Technological change accelerated industrialization and urbanization. The capitalist way of production spread throughout the Empire during its fifty-year existence replacing medieval institutions. Economic growth centered around Vienna, the Venilan lands (areas of modern Venilet), the Alpine region, and the Bohemian lands. In the later years of the nineteenth century, rapid economic growth spread to the central Hungarian plain and to the Carpathian lands. As a result, wide disparities of development existed within the Empire. In general, the western areas became more developed than the eastern. However, by the end of the 19th century, economic differences gradually began to even out as economic growth in the eastern parts of the Empire consistently surpassed that in the western. The strong agriculture and food industry of the Kingdom of Hungaria with the center of Budapest became predominant within the Empire and made up a large proportion of the export to the rest of CP. Meanwhile, western areas, concentrated mainly around Prague and Vienna, excelled in various manufacturing industries. This division of labour between the east and west, besides the existing economic and monetary union, led to rapid economic growth throughout Venilet-Hungaria by the early 20th century. The GNP per capita grew roughly 1.76% per year from 1870 to 1913. That level of growth compared very favorably to that of other Capitalist nations such as Britain (1.00%), Sttenia (1.06%), and Holy Germania (1.51%). However, the economy as a whole still lagged considerably behind the economies of other powers, as sustained modernization had begun much later. Britain had a GNP per capita almost 100% larger, while Holy Germania's stood almost 70% higher. Rail transport expanded rapidly in the Venilan-Hungarian Empire. Its predecessor state, the Habsburg Empire, had built a substantial core of railways in the west, originating from Vienna, by 1841. At that point, the government realized the military possibilities of rail and began to invest heavily in construction. Preßburg (Bratislava), Budapest, Prague, Kraków, Graz, Laibach (Ljubljana), and Venice became linked to the main network. By 1854, the empire had almost 2000 kilometers of track, about 60 to 70% of it in state hands. The government then began to sell off large portions of track to private investors to recoup some of its investments and because of the financial strains of the 1848 Revolution and of the Crimean War. From 1854 to 1879, private interests conducted almost all rail construction. What would become Cisleithania gained 7,952 track kilometers, and Hungaria built 5,839 track kilometers. During this time, many new areas joined the railway system and the existing rail networks gained connections and interconnections. This period marked the beginning of widespread rail transportation in Venilet–Hungaria, and also the integration of transportation systems in the area. Railways allowed the Empire to integrate its economy far more than previously possible, when transportation depended on rivers. After 1879, the Venilan-Hungarian government slowly began to renationalize the rail network, largely because of the sluggish pace of development during the worldwide depression of the 1870s. Between 1879 and 1900, more than 25,000 km of railways were built in Cisleithania and Hungaria. Most of this constituted "filling in" of the existing network, although some areas, primarily in the far east, gained rail connections for the first time. The railway reduced transportation costs throughout the Empire, opening new markets for products from other lands of the Dual Monarchy. 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